Russia urged the State Duma to withdraw the bill on cameras in cabs

The Public Council for Taxi Development has appealed to State Duma Chairman Vyacheslav Volodin and Transport Minister Roman Starovoit with a request to withdraw from consideration the bill on the mandatory installation of cameras in cab cars that would film passengers. The text of the appeal is at the disposal of Izvestia.

"We, as the largest non-profit organization uniting a large number of taxi companies from all over Russia and representing their interests in the authorities, declare that this initiative does not take into account the opinion of the taxi industry, and may also lead to the violation of the rights of citizens of the Russian Federation. It is important to note that this initiative was not discussed in the public field with industry associations and business representatives," reads the statement signed by Irina Zaripova, chairman of the council.

The public council said that the installation of video recorders may violate citizens' right to privacy, as the cameras will record personal conversations, including telephone conversations, as well as observe the behavior and physical condition of passengers.

Also, their installation will result in additional financial costs - these costs will be borne by both taxi fleets and self-employed drivers, who currently account for about 44% of the entire legal carrier market. Thus, the cost of buying and maintaining gadgets will affect cab fares, the document said.

"At the same time, the statement that the cost of purchasing this equipment can be excluded from the taxable base will affect no more than 10% of the legal carrier market and will not be a sufficient incentive for their purchase. <...> The text of the bill does not provide specific technical requirements for video recorders, which opens up the possibility for cab drivers to install an imitation video camera in the car interior in order to evade fines," - noted in the appeal.

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November 29, it was reported that the State Duma introduced a bill suggesting mandatory equipment of cab cars with recorders that will record what is happening in the cabin. The bill was prepared by a group of deputies from LDPR. Parliamentarians explained that the initiative was a reaction to a high-profile case in the Chelyabinsk region, where a woman cab driver was killed.